Medical company Greatbatch plans to move headquarters to Frisco

The founder of the company was the co-inventor of the first successfully implanted pacemaker.

Photo by Anthony Tosie

Frisco Mayor Maher Maso presents a city logo plaque to Tom Hook, Greatbatch president and CEO.

Greatbatch, a medical device manufacturing company, announced Tuesday the company is moving its global corporate headquarters to Frisco. Currently headquartered in Clarence, New York, the company was founded in 1970 by Wilson Greatbatch, the co-inventor of the first successfully implanted pacemaker.

In a statement, Thomas Hook, president and CEO of Greatbatch, cited the North Texas area's strong medical history as one of the key reasons for the move.

"The [North Texas] area is a recognized medical device cluster surrounded by a business community that includes leading medical technology and electronics firms, as well as academic research institutions and industry opinion leaders," Hook said. "While we anticipate expanding our presence at the new headquarters location in the years ahead, we also remain firmly committed to our more than 700 associates in Western New York, as well as the local community."

The move will begin this summer with some of the company's executives relocating to Frisco, according to the statement. Additional relocation of employees and business processes will be done "as business needs warrant."

Tony Felker, president and CEO of the Frisco Chamber of Commerce, welcomes the new addition to the city.

"Our community partners have been working on this for a while," Felker said. "Now we're starting to see how it's going to shake out. We're looking forward to it and can't wait to start working with them."

Greatbatch is expected to maintain its offices in Clarence, although it is currently unclear what percentage of its employees will remain in New York and what percentage will relocate to Frisco in the coming years.

"Obviously we hope they're going to bring a lot of jobs down, but I know it's something that's a work in progress," Felker said, noting that four of the company's executives will be the first to relocate to Frisco. "They probably don't know their exact plan on what's going to be staying in New York at the moment, but I think their long-term goal is definitely looking at [relocating more people and positions to] the area."

Greatbatch is best known for its cardiac, neurology, vascular, and orthopedic medical devices, which it both develops and manufactures. Additionally, the company operates three brands: Greatbatch Medical, Electrochem, and the QiG Group.

The company is globally traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "GB" and posted a record first quarter sales of $159.1 million earlier this year, with $46.9 million in profits. Greatbatch currently has more than 20 locations worldwide; more than 700 of its roughly 3,500 employees are currently located in its New York offices.

Felker was encouraged to see another company moving to Frisco.

"There are a lot of great possibilities, and we hope they'll become great community partners," he said. "Whenever a global headquarters comes to Frisco, it's great news for the city."